Volkswagen may decide where to build a new electric car factory by the end of March, according tomedia reports, and the group also plans to increase overall production in the second half of 2022, although they expect the chip shortage to continue this year.

　　(Image source: Volkswagen)

　　Volkswagen said last year it would build a new state-of-the-art car factory near its headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany, to counter Tesla, whose electric car factory near Berlin is about to start production .

　　The new plant is part of the Trinity project of the VW Group, which wants to produce a flagship electric sedan in Wolfsburg from 2026, a move the VW union hopes will help as Volkswagen prepares to stop selling combustion-engine vehicles in Europe from 2035. Securing the future of the Wolfsburg plant.

　　The union said VW produced 330,000 fewer cars at its Wolfsburg plant last year than originally planned due to a shortage of chips, and fewer than 400,000 cars rolled off the assembly line. The company said in early February that night shifts would be temporarily canceled on some production lines at the Wolfsburg plant due to a shortage of chips. Cavallo said: "The next few months will be very difficult, but the Wolfsburg plant will remain the main factory of the Volkswagen Group, where we will determine the direction of the company's development."

　　Despite chip supply challenges, Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess said in a separate statement on February 16 that he expects the company to increase production in the second half of the year. He revealed that the 2022 production capacity of the top model of the group's high-end brand has been fully booked, and its truck business has also received a large number of orders. Diess expects the chip supply shortage to continue this year. He said: "The supply situation is easing, but in 2022 our production will still not be able to meet the market demand. We see opportunities to further increase production, especially this year. in the second half of the year.”

　　This article is reproduced from Gasgoo